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The new flagship monsters are Frankenstein’s Monkey, Popsicle Werewolf, and Dracula Dragon. Sunbreak, as has been noted a hundred times by everyone who enjoys these games, takes more of a Western inspiration, as opposed to Rise’s Eastern influence. I absolutely adore the new Citadel map and the returning Jungle location, however, and the focus on these locales was a nice mixup. Still, it makes the experience a bit lopsided, and I wish the new Switch Skills at least had been introduced earlier so I could enjoy pummeling the funny chicken monster a little more in the meantime. It makes sense - I can’t imagine taking the time to develop a bunch of low-tier dumpy monsters only for players to clown on them in five minutes and grind the newest omega-ultra-dragon for a hundred hours. After being shoved off to Elgado, the expansion’s new hub area, you’re back to fighting the usual suspects until you’ve ranked up enough to take on Sunbreak’s new and returning big-bads. Unfortunately, these new Switch Skills come a bit late into the experience. My Switch Axe was given a versatile counter move that charged it up instantly, and I felt drunk with power every time I pulled it off. Still, they’re sure to spice up any player’s main weapon to keep up with the challenge of Master Rank. New Switch Skills are the most fundamental addition to Sunbreak, which is a bit less compelling than the all-new piece of gear Iceborne offered. Being able to quickly recover, move around, and utilize Silkbind attacks are an absolute necessity, and it’s continually impressive how finely tuned the complete package is around these mechanics.
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I thought more than once how abysmal the experience of fighting one of Sunbreak’s newcomers with World’s mechanics would be. Verticality and speed are the name of the game, and each monster has been given the means to keep up (for the most part). Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak, then, is the logical conclusion of the wirebug style of gameplay. You don’t get a slinger and a wirebug, you get what the game gives you and are expected to make the most of it. It’s an impressive feat, made more refreshing by the series’ ability to trim the fat. Each of these pieces of equipment fundamentally changes the way you interact with your weapon and the world that only a fragment of skill and muscle memory can carry over from game to game. Monster Hunter World brought the slinger, Iceborne the clutch claw, and Rise the wirebug. What’s important here is the dance, and the ways the Monster Hunterseries manages to innovate on it in each title and expansion.
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How is it like chess? Because you wait for your opponent? Because of the importance of positioning? I guess a lot of games are a little bit like chess. For this reason, each fight is like a dance, waiting for the opportunity to strike and carefully positioning yourself to punish the monster’s recovery animations. When you start swinging your giant weapon, you’re going to finish swinging it or get knocked on your ass trying. In Monster Hunter, there’s a lot of commitment to attacks - far more than even Elden Ring or Dark Souls. I’m still going to do that, just a little faster. I originally drafted this intro with a tired (and bad) analogy comparing Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak to the game of chess.